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Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several thousand years, and has had different meanings throughout this period. During the Age of Sail, the term cruising referred to certain kinds of missions – independent scouting, raiding or commerce protection – fulfilled by a frigate or sloop, which were the cruising warships of a fleet. This article is about the Warship size class Cruiser and not about Civilian Cruise Ships (See Cruise Ships) History For convenience, the history of the term Cruiser can be divided into three portions - Pre Astro Terran, where the ships named Cruisers were seafaring ship; United Earth period where the first Space Cruisers were introduced; and the Union Period. Pre Astro Terran *From the middle of the 19th century, cruiser came to be a classification for the ships intended for this kind of role, though cruisers came in a wide variety of sizes, from the small protected cruiser to armored cruisers which were as large (though not as powerful) as a battleship. *By the early 20th century, cruisers could be placed on a consistent scale of warship size, smaller than a battleship but larger than a destroyer. In 1922, the Washington Naval Treaty placed a formal limit on cruisers, which were defined as warships of up to 10,000 tons displacement carrying guns no larger than 8 inches in caliber. These limits shaped cruisers up until the end of World War II. The very large battlecruisers of the World War I era were now classified, along with battleships, as capital ships. *In the later 20th century, the obsolescence of the battleship left the cruiser as the largest and most powerful surface combatant. The role of the cruiser varied according to ship and navy, often including air defense, commerce raiding and shore bombardment. The U.S. Navy in the Cold War period built guided-missile cruisers primarily designed to provide air defense, while the navy of the USSR built battlecruisers with heavy anti-ship missiles designed to sink NATO carrier task forces. United Earth United Earth Space Fleet designated a Cruiser class above destroyer and below Star Ship.Star Ship is a distinct unique ship class used by United Earth only. ( After the Union was founded the United Earth Star ships were reclassified as Cruisers UES used Cruisers specifically for shipping lane protection. As a ship that could operate fleet independent and patrol large regions. United Stars of the Galaxies Between the time of the founding of the United Stars of the Galaxies and 5050, the Union Navy continued to use the same definition of Cruiser as the United Earth Navy. Currently only two known civilizations use a class of ship that can be called cruiser: the United Stars, Nogoll (until 5020), and the Shiss, operate cruisersThe Nogoll until the final Nogoll - Union war also used Cruisers. As a result of that war the Nogoll military was destroyed and the White Nogoll, having been returned to power petitioned to join the Union., though the line between cruisers and destroyers is once again blurred. New Union destroyers (for instance the Harbinger class) are often larger and more powerful than cruiser classes they replace. Formal Definition In his State of the Fleet Address in 5050 Admiral McElligott requested before the Armed forces committee and the Assembly a new Cruiser Class and redefinition. The committee was less than enthusiastic to add what a Thauran Assembly member called, yet another stop gap class. With the funds and resources used for a new class, we could also equip the Army with much needed updated Planetary Siege Engines. Another assembly member argued that the Navy needs to quit building small ships and concentrate on Battle ships and Dreadnoughts. McElligott called Stahl to the floor and asked him to make the case and Stahl showed them a few recordings and revealed the existence of an until then secret Super Cruiser, named USS Tigershark. He explained that the Fleet needed Cruisers and Super Cruisers as independent Units where Battle Ships were either overkill or too overbearing and oppressive. He explained that Cruisers and Super cruisers were the true backbone of the Fleet. As always when Stahl spoke, someone called for a Union Wide Vote and so it came that Assembly Docket 33 of Union Week 5050 became a Union Wide Vote Issue and the Ship class Cruiser and Super Cruiser are by 98% Union Vote needed and McElligotts request for a new Cruiser Class was approved (Assembly Vote 99.5 %) The incident had a side effect that the declassified passages of the Log book of the USS Tigershark became the most read / requested book in Union history.The members of the Tigershark crew became instant celebrities: The Ship naming committee was overwhelmed with requests to name ships: Krabbel, Circuit, Shea, Shaka etc.At the time all of those names ware rejected as the officers in question were still alive and serving in the fleet. There have been no ships named after Stahl during his service, although there was one so named during his exile. By Assembly decision, a cruiser is a Union War Ship - Multi Mission Capable - No smaller than 500 meters and not larger than 1000 meters. A Super Cruiser is a Union War Ship - Multi Mission Capable = - No smaller than 1000 m and not larger than 2000 m. By definition a Cruiser can cruise independent of a fleet and operate for an extended period of time (and thus taking on the same mission profile as a United Earth Star Ship) Category:Spacecraft Class